CHAPTER XIV.

THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS OF THE YEAR 1901-02.

By WILLIAM R. HARPER,

President of the University of Chicago.

[Reprinted from the Proceedings of the National Educational Association, 1902.]

In attempting a survey of the progress of educational work during the period of a single year, one quickly discovers three or four things: (1) That such a survey will contain no adequate presentation of the mass of material which may rightly lay claim to be included-a volume of hundreds of pages being hardly sufficient, much less a paper of forty or fifty minutes; (2) that no sharp line can be drawn between different years, since the more important events really assume the nature of movements, and most of them cover a period of several years; (3) that prejudice against taking forward steps in education has been greatly diminished, and skepticism as to the value of the old conventional usages in schools and colleges is largely on the increase; (4) that, whatever may have been true in the past, no very close connection any longer exists between the educational movements of England and the Continent and those of our own land. At all events, we may no longer be counted merely as followers; in some respects we may, perhaps, claim the position of leadership.

TRIBUTE TO COL. F. W. PARKER.

In the field of elementary education the most significant single event-that which has touched the largest number of persons and affected them most keenlyhas been the death of Col. Francis W. Parker. As in the case of most men who have accomplished much, the greatness of his work was not fully apparent until he was taken away. The universal appreciation of his leadership, the universal testimony to the greatness of his career, and the universal mourning over his sudden death, together constitute the most striking event of the year. That he should be taken away at the very moment when he was about to enjoy the fruition of a lifetime's work, and that he should not be permitted to enter the buildings on whose plans he had spent so much time and energy, was indeed pathetic; but that he had built foundations broad and strong for future work in the field of elementary education; that he had made noteworthy contributions to the cause of public school education; that, indeed, he was one of the great leaders of the last quarter of a century-is everywhere acknowledged. Although he was an officer of the University of Chicago, I may be permitted to say these things in view of the fact that his connection with the institution was so brief; and I am sure that the general educational public will approve the policy adopted by the university, to go forward with the work which he established and to undertake the accomplishment of this work in accordance with his purpose and his spirit. To this is pledged the faculty of the school of education, so closely connected with him personally and officially, and to this is pledged also the new director,

Mr. Dewey. It is not too much to expect that this faculty shall develop, on the foundations which have already been laid, a great and noble institution from which good and only good shall emanate for the public school system of the country.

CURRICULUM OF THE COMMON SCHOOL.

The curriculum of the common school in these last years has greatly expanded, and now includes much material drawn from the departments of natural science, drawing, art, manual training, as well as from those of history and literature. This material is so various in its character and so large in its amount as to produce a stuffed condition of the school course which occasions uneasiness and distress." The “new education" has given us certain problems that urgently demand solution. It is generally understood that these problems group themselves under two heads: (1) How to select in each department of study the most important topics for treatment, and (2) how to bring these various departments of study into such relationship with each other that each will contribute to the other, and that waste shall be reduced to a minimum. So far as I am able to gather the facts, it may be said that no new principles or theories have been projected during the past year. Leaders in the new education have concentrated their efforts upon its practical side. In many quarters there has been conducted quiet investigation of the problems just mentioned. The educational theory and practice, which is based on the teachings of psychology and the history and development of the culture of the race, is becoming more and more generally accepted; but it requires just such critical and scientific study as that which is being given it in educational circles throughout the various sections of the country. The changes that have already come are almost greater than can be calculated. It is essential, however, that the severest tests be applied, and that the most rigid scientific criticism be encouraged.

TRAINING IN ÆSTHETICS.

No one can fail to see the increasing acknowledgment in the modern education of the child of the importance of training in æsthetics. In more than one great center there has been manifested a growing desire to decorate and beautify the buildings. It has been suggested that perhaps in no former year has greater interest been taken in the architecture of the school buildings than during this year. The work accomplished in this regard in the cities of Boston, New York, and Chicago deserves especial mention.

RAISING THE NORMAL SCHOOL STANDARD.

It is true, perhaps, that the teacher is beginning to recognize more clearly the importance of study for the sake of information as distinguished from that of method study. This difference is the old bone of contention between the normal school and the college. A radical step, and one which seems to acknowledge this general principle, has been taken during the past year in the city of Chicago. The city normal school, whose function it is to train teachers for the elementary field, has advanced its course of study to three years, and has made its requirement for admission coordinate with that of the leading colleges in the country. This step will surely be followed by other normal schools. In establishing and maintaining such scholastic standards the public normal schools join with the schools and departments of education in the colleges and universities to strengthen the equipment which has hitherto seemed sufficient for the corps of elementary teachers. The old requirement was that of the high school curriculum, with the adding of one or two years of professional training. This means that larger familiarity with the subjects taught-in other words, broader scholarship-will

henceforth be demanded.

The most serious drawback to the advancement of the work in the elementary schools along the lines of the educational theories of recent times has been the utterly inadequate scholastic training of the teachers who undertook professional investigation. The need of broader scholarship has nowhere been more deeply appreciated than among the teachers themselves, and in testimony of this statement we need only recall the interest and support of that great multitude of elementary teachers who spend a part of their vacations in the summer schools and colleges. The encouragement of summer study by the superintendents of the great cities, and the avidity with which such opportunities have been seized, present a situation heretofore unknown, and one from which the greatest possible results may be expected. It is not method study simply that these teachers hunger for; it is rather information on special subjects in which they have discovered their weakness.

LARGER FREEDOM FOR THE TEACHER.

This suggests another characteristic of the teacher's work, which stands to-day in marked contrast with that of even recent years. I have in mind the larger freedom accorded each individual teacher; freedom from the old conventions and ideas as to what constituted curriculum as well as method. The breaking up of these formal conceptions has resulted in a spiritual liberty formerly unknown and capable of producing the largest efficiency in the work of the individual teacher. The work is no longer so mechanical. The presentation of these new subjects compels variety of method, and it is a noteworthy fact that with this greater freedom from conventional treatment there is a growth of mind and spirit which gives an inspiration and arouses an enthusiasm incomparable with that of the old régime. There are some who think that this freedom of the teacher has had its origin in the efforts made within these later times to adjust the work of the school to its environment; to have the child study things instead of studying about things; to bring him into contact with real life instead of that which represents life. It has seemed to me that all of this is strictly parallel with that freedom of the teacher which is found in elective work as compared with work prescribed; and while in the latter case there will always be prescribed work, and in the former case we must recognize the necessity of a certain amount of rigidity, in both movements we are tending toward larger spiritual as well as intellectual liberty.

KINDERGARTEN WORK FIRMLY ESTABLISHED.

The friends in the stronghold of kindergarten work, Chicago, have been greatly exercised lest a backward step should be taken in this important field. At times it seemed to the public that the whole department of kindergarten work was to be abandoned in the city of Chicago for lack of funds. It is probable that nothing could have done more to arouse the public interest in the subject than the danger which was thought to exist. It may be said with confidence that at no previous time has the position of the kindergarten work been more strongly established, and to my mind this constitutes one of the most important facts in the educational history of the year. The place of the kindergarten has been established in the minds of the great majority of Chicago citizens and all future budgets must contain liberal provision for this division of educational work. The superintendent of Chicago schools has strongly favored the placing of kindergarten work in the schools, especially in those of the poorer districts. In arrangements made for next year the same number of schools as for last year has been retained, but their effectiveness has been doubled, so that twice as many children will be cared for.

CENTRALIZATION OF SCHOOLS.

Much may be expected from the campaign now being made in Michigan in behalf of the centralized rural school. Strong public sentiment has been aroused, and while hitherto the State grange has opposed every movement in this direction, a large part of its membership has come to advocate the proposed change. The district schools will be great gainers from this movement.

AGRICULTURE IN RURAL SCHOOLS.

An interesting development in connection with the rural schools, especially in the States of Wisconsin and Missouri, is to be noted in the introduction of instruction in agriculture. This, of course, corresponds to the introduction of industrial or manual training in the city schools. It is an application of the now generally recognized principle of bringing the school work into close touch with the home life of the pupil; and it may safely be predicted that no more important application of the principle has yet been discovered. The nature of the subjects thus introduced and their pedagogical possibilities combine to make this step one of marked significance in the history of education. The complete reports of the revision of the public-school system of Ohio have not yet been published, but from private information it may be said that a most rigid revision of the system has been adopted, and that the Ohio public-school system may henceforth take its place side by side with that of other States which have in these last years made great progress.

SUPERINTENDENT'S TENURE IN CHICAGO.

In addition to the significant steps taken by the board of education of the city of Chicago in enlarging the curriculum of the State normal school from two years to three, mention must also be made of the even more significant action involved in giving the superintendent an appointment for five years instead of one. This action, coupled with the general policy adopted in connection with the appointment of teachers, the large number of new buildings provided for, make the past year one of the most eventful in the history of the Chicago schools. It is generally recognized that these forward steps are in accordance with public sentiment, and are the outgrowth, in large measure, of seed sown in former years. The splendid battle fought in 1899 and 1900 by Mr. Andrews, now chancellor of the University of Nebraska, has secured results which but for this battle would have been impossible.

THE SOUTHERN EDUCATION BOARD.

The Southern Education Board, which was the outcome of the Capon Springs conference held in Winston-Salem, N. C., in 1901, has already shown its strength and its power to accomplish good results. For the first time in the history of Southern education a comprehensive undertaking has been launched founded upon true principles. That educational work in the South should have to do with the education of the white man as well as the negro; that it should be worked out, for the most part, by Southern men; and that it should begin with the public school in the South are principles which appeal directly to the common sense of every intelligent thinker. It is confessedly true that the Southern States have not received their proper share of the great gifts for education. Twentyfive per cent of the population of our country should receive a larger proportion than 3 per cent of the general contributions to education. The Southern board will surely have the sympathy and cooperation of every friend of education in the North, and it is a source of satisfaction that in the membership of the board we recognize the names of men who are known in the North as well as in the

South for a true interest in sound education. The distinctive interest of this board, as has been officially announced, is in the public school, and it is particularly concerned in those forms of education “which look toward thrift, industry, and usefulness. This fact will guarantee, in part at least, the adoption of the principles of the new education. Dean Russell, of the Teachers College, New York City, in a personal letter makes this statement:

We have been changing our conception of what education is. Formerly the school aimed very largely at learning. Now we are including doing as an element in a good education that should perhaps be as prominent as the learning. We are stimulated in this direction by the Southern board above mentioned, for they stand very strongly for industrial education, in which a student consumes perhaps half of his time in the study of books and in reflection and the other half in doing or making something. In my opinion this tendency of the Southern board and of the Southern schools is reacting powerfully upon the conception of education in the North. In fact, for several years Hampton has been a most ardent advocate of an education which gives about equal prominence to learning and doing, and in this respect has been in advance of Northern institutions. We seem to be gradually accepting the Hampton view in the North, although we have been approaching the same idea from another side. The nature of the child of course, requires a large amount of motor activity, and the demands of society also favor a kind of education which includes the execution of one's ideas. These latter two facts therefore, as well as the influence of the Hampton and Tuskegee schools, have led us to make a great advance in favor of more doing, making, executing, in the common schools.

As a result of this advancement, the three R's are not crowded out, but they are growing relatively less prominent, and much greater emphasis than heretofore is being thrown upon proper materials with which to work with the hands in the schoolroom. Just as the kindergarten has given much study to the gifts-that is, to the materials out of which the children shall make all sorts of objects-so the elementary school-teachers are being stimulated to make an extensive study of the proper materials to be used for construction of objects in grade work. Thus we are debating about the extent to which clay, paper, pasteboard, wood, bent iron, etc., shall be used, and this will probably be a more prominent topic in the future.

THE GENERAL EDUCATION BOARD.

A still more recent forward step in the interests of Southern education is the organization of a body called the General Education Board. The function of this board is entirely distinct from that of the Southern education board. The latter exists for the purpose of developing an educational sentiment. The former board has been organized to receive, hold, and dispose money for Southern education. The board has already at its command a fund of more than a million dollars. Its methods of work are those born of large experience, and its breadth of sympathy and its wisdom have already been satisfactorily administered. No stronger agencies, no agencies more greatly needed, have been established in any sphere of work, educational or industrial, in this last year than the agencies named-the Southern Education Board and the General Education Board.

CURRICULUM OF THE SECONDARY SCHOOLS.

In connection with the curriculum of the secondary schools, four or five tendencies may clearly be noted. Some of these are progressive; some of them may, perhaps, be regarded as characteristic of movement backward. In the latter class belongs, in the opinion of the writer, the disposition to give up provision for instruction in Greek. That there exists such a disposition can not be denied. It seems to grow out of the desire to make way for more practical subjects; but the fact is that as many people desire Greek to-day as at any time in the past. The more practical subjects are called for by another class of students. The introduction of business and industrial courses is rapidly increasing the number of high-school students, but these new students are in addition to those who other